Santa Monica
Santa Monica is an influential jurisdiction in the Los Angeles County region, so it was of particular importance to address shortcomings in their preliminarily housing element materials. Advocacy by Abundant Housing LA and Santa Monica led to a progressive shift in the city council to embrace a bolder vision for their housing elements, including ending exclusionary zoning and affirmatively furthering fair housing. We hope they follow through!
March 30, 2021
Dear Councilmembers:
Thank you for the opportunity to comment on the process of updating the housing element of Santa Monica’s general plan. We are writing on behalf of Abundant Housing LA and YIMBY Law regarding Santa Monica’s 6th Cycle housing element update. Abundant Housing LA is a pro-housing, nonprofit advocacy organization working to help solve Southern California’s housing crisis, and YIMBY Law’s mission is to make housing in California more accessible and affordable through enforcement of state housing law. We support more housing at all levels of affordability and reforms to land use and zoning codes, which are needed in order to make housing more affordable, improve access to jobs and transit, promote greater environmental sustainability, and advance racial and economic equity.
In October 2020, AHLA shared a letter with the Santa Monica City Council and Planning Department, providing guidance on how the City should fulfill both the letter and the spirit of housing element law. We have reviewed the City of Santa Monica’s draft site inventory and the Planning Commission staff report, and have major concerns about the City of Santa Monica’s willingness and ability to meet its state-mandated RHNA targets. The staff report and draft site inventory are inconsistent with HCD’s instructions and the requirement that housing element updates affirmatively further fair housing under Assembly Bill 686.
